Prism, camera module and electronic equipment

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of optical elements, and discloses a prism, a camera module and electronic equipment. The camera module comprises a prism, a lens assembly and an image sensor. The lens assembly and the image sensor are located on the same side of the prism. Specifically, the prism comprises an incident surface, an emergent surface and at least three reflecting surfaces. Wherein the incident plane is parallel to the emergent plane, the lens assembly is arranged opposite to the incident plane, and the optical axis of the lens assembly is perpendicular to the incident plane. The light-sensitive surface and the emergent surface of the image sensor are oppositely arranged. The at least three reflecting surfaces reflect light rays incident through the incident surface for at least three times. According to the camera module, the size can be effectively reduced while the shooting performance (such as long-range shooting performance, night scene, dark light and backlight scene shooting performance and the like) is ensured, the assembly difficulty is low, and the installation error is small.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of optical elements, and in particular to a prism, a camera module and an electronic device. Background Art

[0002] Current electronic devices are often equipped with telephoto camera modules, which enable clear long-range photography, thereby improving the quality of distant object imaging. A telephoto camera module may include a lens assembly and an image sensor. Light from a distant object is transmitted through the lens assembly to the image sensor, forming an image of the object.

[0003] With the trend toward miniaturization and compactness in electronic devices, the size of telephoto camera modules needs to be further reduced. At the same time, the telephoto camera module's shooting performance (e.g., long-range shooting performance, night scenes, low-light and backlit scene shooting performance) needs to be taken into account. However, small size and shooting performance are mutually constrained to some extent, resulting in a significant bottleneck in the design of telephoto camera modules. It is difficult to meet the design requirements of miniaturization and compactness of electronic devices while ensuring shooting performance. Furthermore, the assembly of the various components in current telephoto camera modules is relatively difficult, and installation errors are difficult to reduce, which also has a certain impact on shooting performance. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In order to solve the above technical problems, the present application provides a prism, a camera module and an electronic device. The present application is introduced from multiple aspects below, and the implementation methods and beneficial effects of the following multiple aspects can be referenced with each other.

[0005] In a first aspect, the present application provides a camera module comprising a prism, a lens assembly, and an image sensor. Furthermore, the lens assembly and the image sensor are located on the same side of the prism. Specifically, the prism comprises an incident surface, an exit surface, and at least three reflective surfaces. The incident surface and the exit surface are parallel, the lens assembly is disposed opposite the incident surface, and the optical axis of the lens assembly is perpendicular to the incident surface. The photosensitive surface of the image sensor is disposed opposite the exit surface. The at least three reflective surfaces reflect at least three times the light incident on the incident surface.

[0006] The above-mentioned camera module, by setting a prism, can effectively reduce the volume while ensuring shooting performance (for example, long-range shooting performance, night scene, dark light and backlight scene shooting performance, etc.), meet the miniaturization and compact design requirements of electronic equipment, and has low assembly difficulty and small installation error.

[0007] For example, when the camera module is installed in an electronic device, the incident surface and the exit surface of the prism and the image sensor are respectively perpendicular to the thickness direction of the electronic device. The optical axis of the lens assembly is parallel to the thickness direction of the electronic device. Since the lens assembly and the image sensor are placed on the same side of the prism, the image sensor can share the thickness space of the electronic device with the lens assembly, which is conducive to thinning the thickness of the electronic device. At the same time, the distance between the lens assembly and the image sensor can also be smaller, thereby saving the accommodation space of the electronic device. In addition, the installation reference surface of the lens assembly and the image sensor can be the same, for example, it can be a surface parallel to the incident surface and the exit surface (such as the plane where the length and width of the electronic device are located), thereby effectively reducing the difficulty of assembly and smaller installation errors.

[0008] Secondly, the image sensor is placed perpendicular to the thickness of the electronic device, and the electronic device usually has a large space in its length and width directions. Therefore, without increasing the thickness, the size of the image sensor can be set as large as possible, thereby effectively increasing the area of ​​the photosensitive surface and increasing the amount of light entering, so that the camera module has better night scene, low light and backlight scene shooting performance, and can also increase the pixel, thereby improving the resolution and thus improving the image quality. At the same time, the device connected to the image sensor (for example, a circuit board) can also be placed vertically, which is conducive to reducing the thickness of the electronic device.

[0009] In addition, the prism has at least three reflective surfaces, which can reflect the light incident through the incident surface at least three times. This allows the camera module to have a sufficiently long back focus optical path in a smaller space, thereby increasing the focal length and effectively improving the long-range shooting performance.

[0010] Finally, the above-mentioned camera module only needs one reflective element, a prism, to achieve at least three reflections of light. The small number of reflective elements not only reduces the difficulty of assembly and unnecessary installation errors, but also avoids the increase in volume caused by multiple reflective elements. The volume of the prism itself is also relatively small, which makes the overall size of the camera module small, the structure simple and compact, and is conducive to the miniaturization and compact design of electronic equipment. At the same time, the light emitted from the lens assembly can be emitted to the image sensor through only one prism, which can reduce the light loss in the prism-air-prism process, thereby ensuring that the image sensor can receive sufficient light input, thereby improving the shooting performance of night scenes, low light and backlight scenes, and improving the imaging quality.

[0011] In a possible implementation of the first aspect, the at least three reflective surfaces include a first reflective surface, a second reflective surface, and a third reflective surface that sequentially reflect light. One end of the incident surface is connected to one end of the second reflective surface. The angle between the incident surface and the second reflective surface is obtuse. The other end of the incident surface is connected to one end of the exit surface. The other end of the exit surface is connected to the first reflective surface via the third reflective surface. The angle between the exit surface and the third reflective surface is 40° to 50°. The angle between the third reflective surface and the first reflective surface is obtuse. The angle between the first reflective surface and the second reflective surface is 40° to 50°.

[0012] In a possible implementation of the first aspect, the angle α1 between the second reflecting surface and the incident surface and the effective diameter h of the incident surface satisfy the following relationship: 0.2≤|tanα1| / h≤0.3.

[0013] In this way, the effective diameter h of the prism's incident surface can match the angle α1 between the incident surface and the second reflective surface, thereby constraining the direction of the light beam entering the prism and ensuring that the light beam ultimately converges into multiple image points on the photosensitive surface of the image sensor, ultimately forming an optical image and realizing the camera module's telephoto shooting function. For example, |tanα1| / h can be 0.2, 0.21, 0.22, 0.23, etc.

[0014] In a possible implementation of the first aspect, the prism is made of a moldable material, such as glass or plastic.

[0015] According to the embodiments of the present application, when the prism material is an open-mold material, the prisms can be mass-produced through an open-mold molding process, thereby effectively reducing production costs, achieving high mass production, and achieving a high yield rate. For example, after designing a high-precision prism mold, softened glass is placed into the prism mold and directly molded to produce a prism that meets the requirements. Without the need for traditional rough grinding, fine grinding, polishing, edging, and centering processes, the prism can achieve high standards of dimensional accuracy, surface shape accuracy, and surface roughness. The molding process is easy, facilitates mass production, and can be integrated into a single piece at a low cost.

[0016] In a possible implementation of the first aspect, the angle between the optical axis of the lens assembly and the incident surface of the prism is 88° to 92°, for example, 88°, 89°, 91°, etc.

[0017] In a possible implementation of the first aspect above, a main cross-section of the prism is a pentagon.

[0018] According to an embodiment of the present application, by removing a portion of the angled region between the first and second reflective surfaces of the prism, a prism with a pentagonal main cross-section can be obtained. This angled region is typically an optically inactive region, and therefore can be referred to as an edge region. That is, the edge region does not allow light to pass through, or in other words, the light beam does not propagate through the edge region. Therefore, removing the edge region does not affect the propagation of the light beam in the prism, while also effectively reducing the volume of the prism.

[0019] In a possible implementation of the first aspect above, the effective focal length of the camera module is 50 mm to 70 mm, for example, 50 mm, 51 mm, 52 mm, 53 mm, etc. The large focal length provides a good long-range shooting effect.

[0020] In a possible implementation of the first aspect above, half of the diagonal length of the effective pixel area on the imaging surface of the camera module is 4mm to 7.7mm, for example, 4mm, 5mm, 6mm, 7mm, etc., with a large amount of light entering and excellent performance in shooting night scenes, dark light and backlight scenes.

[0021] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, along a first direction, the sum of the size of the lens assembly, the size of the image sensor, and the distance between the lens assembly and the image sensor is a first dimension. The sum of the size of the incident surface and the size of the exit surface is a second dimension. The ratio between the first dimension and the second dimension is 0.8 to 1.2, and the first direction is the direction from the incident surface to the exit surface. For example, the ratio between the first dimension and the second dimension can be 0.8, 0.9, 1, 1.1, 1.2, etc.

[0022] In this way, along the first direction, the space required for arranging the lens assembly and the image sensor is roughly equivalent to the space occupied by the incident surface and the exit surface of the prism. The distance between the lens assembly and the image sensor is relatively small, and the overall structure of the camera module is relatively compact.

[0023] In a possible implementation of the first aspect, the camera assembly further includes a prism housing, which is wrapped around the surface of the prism, thereby protecting and fixing the prism.

[0024] In a possible implementation of the first aspect, the lens assembly is a variable-focus lens assembly.

[0025] A variable-focus lens assembly can meet the needs of various shooting scenarios. For example, the lens assembly may include a movable optical element (e.g., a lens) that can be moved to magnify or reduce the scene to be photographed, thereby achieving optical zoom, such as 5x, 10x, or 15x optical zoom, which has a wide range of applications.

[0026] A second aspect of the present application provides an electronic device, comprising a housing and a camera module according to the first aspect and any possible implementation of the first aspect. The camera module is disposed on the housing, and the incident surface and the exit surface of the prism are perpendicular to the thickness direction of the electronic device.

[0027] In a third aspect, the present application provides a prism for use in a camera module. The prism includes an incident surface, an exit surface, and at least three reflective surfaces. The incident surface and the exit surface are parallel. The at least three reflective surfaces reflect light incident on the incident surface at least three times.

[0028] In one possible implementation of the third aspect, the camera module further includes a lens assembly and an image sensor, wherein the lens assembly and the image sensor are located on the same side of the prism. The lens assembly is disposed opposite the incident surface, and the optical axis of the lens assembly is perpendicular to the incident surface. The photosensitive surface of the image sensor is disposed opposite the exit surface.

[0029] In a possible implementation of the third aspect, the at least three reflective surfaces include a first reflective surface, a second reflective surface, and a third reflective surface that sequentially reflect light. One end of the incident surface is connected to one end of the second reflective surface. The angle between the incident surface and the second reflective surface is obtuse. The other end of the incident surface is connected to one end of the exit surface. The other end of the exit surface is connected to the first reflective surface via the third reflective surface. The angle between the exit surface and the third reflective surface is 40° to 50°. The angle between the third reflective surface and the first reflective surface is obtuse. The angle between the first reflective surface and the second reflective surface is 40° to 50°.

[0030] In a possible implementation of the third aspect, the angle α1 between the second reflecting surface and the incident surface and the effective diameter h of the incident surface satisfy the following relationship: 0.2≤|tanα1| / h≤0.3.

[0031] In a possible implementation of the third aspect above, a main cross-section of the prism is a pentagon.

[0032] In a possible implementation of the third aspect, the prism is made of a moldable material.

[0033] It should be understood that the beneficial effects of the second and third aspects mentioned above can be referred to the description of the first aspect mentioned above and will not be elaborated here.

[0034] Among them, the technical effects brought about by any implementation method in the third aspect can refer to the technical effects brought about by different implementation methods in the above-mentioned first aspect, and will not be repeated here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0035] Figure 1A A perspective view of a mobile phone in an embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0036] Figure 1B An exploded view of a mobile phone in an embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0037] Figure 2 Shows a schematic structural diagram of a telephoto camera module in some technical solutions;

[0038] Figure 3 The exemplary structure of the camera module in the embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0039] Figure 4 The optical path diagram of the camera module in the embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0040] Figure 5 The figure shows the optical path formed when the light beam enters the camera module in the embodiment of the present application;

[0041] Figure 6 Shows an exemplary structure 1 of a camera module in some other technical solutions;

[0042] Figure 7 Shows an exemplary structure 2 of a camera module in other technical solutions;

[0043] Figure 8 Shows an exemplary structure 3 of a camera module in some other technical solutions;

[0044] Figure 9 Shows an exemplary structure 4 of a camera module in some other technical solutions;

[0045] Figure 10 Shows an exemplary structure 5 of a camera module in other technical solutions;

[0046] Figure 11 FIG6 shows an exemplary structure 6 of a camera module in other technical solutions;

[0047] Figure 12 FIG7 shows an exemplary structure of a camera module in some other technical solutions;

[0048] Figure 13 FIG8 shows an exemplary structure of a camera module in some other technical solutions. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0049] The specific embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0050] For ease of understanding, the relevant technical terms involved in the embodiments of this application are explained and described below.

[0051] (1) Optical axis

[0052] The optical axis can be an axis perpendicular to the center of a lens. The optical axis of a lens assembly can be an axis passing through the centers of each lens in the lens assembly. The optical axis direction refers to a direction parallel to the optical axis.

[0053] (2) Focal length

[0054] Focal length, also known as focal length, is a measure of light convergence or divergence in an optical system. It refers to the vertical distance from the optical center of a lens or lens assembly to the focal plane, when an object at infinite distance forms a sharp image on the focal plane. From a practical perspective, it can be understood as the distance from the center of the lens to the plane when the object is at infinite distance. For fixed-focus lenses, the position of the optical center is fixed; for zoom lenses, the position of the optical center is variable, resulting in changes in the focal length of the lens.

[0055] (3) Effective focal length (EFL)

[0056] The effective focal length is the distance from the center of the lens to the focal point.

[0057] (4) Back focus optical path

[0058] Back focus refers to the length of the optical path between the image side of the lens closest to the image side and the image sensor in an optical system. A longer back focus indicates a longer focal length; conversely, a shorter back focus indicates a shorter focal length.

[0059] The embodiments of the present application will be described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0060] The present application provides a prism, including a camera module and an electronic device. The electronic device may be a computer, communication, or consumer electronics product (collectively referred to as "3C products"), such as a mobile phone, tablet computer, laptop computer, television, camera, vehicle-mounted equipment (e.g., a driving recorder), security equipment (e.g., a surveillance camera), an intelligent robot, or other electronic device with a shooting function. For ease of description, a mobile phone is used as an example of the electronic device.

[0061] Figure 1A and Figure 1B The exemplary structure of the mobile phone 1 in the embodiment of the present application is shown, wherein: Figure 1A is a three-dimensional image of the mobile phone 1, Figure 1BIt is an exploded view of the mobile phone 1, and the dotted arrows show the assembly relationship of the various components in the mobile phone 1. In the various figures herein, the X-axis direction is the length direction of the mobile phone 1, for example, the positive direction of the X-axis is the direction from the bottom to the top of the mobile phone 1 in normal use; the Y-axis direction is the width direction of the mobile phone 1, for example, the positive direction of the Y-axis is the direction from the right to the left of the mobile phone 1 in normal use; the Z-axis direction is the thickness direction of the mobile phone 1, for example, the positive direction of the Z-axis is the direction from the front to the back of the mobile phone 1 in normal use. Among them, the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction and the Z-axis direction intersect with each other in pairs. For example, the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction and the Z-axis direction can be perpendicular to each other in pairs. In this application, the height dimension or the thickness dimension is the dimension along the Z-axis direction, which will not be described in detail below.

[0062] It can be understood that the mutual parallelism in this application is not absolute parallelism, and the approximate parallelism caused by processing errors and assembly errors is also within the scope of mutual parallelism in this application. For example, when the angle between two structural features is less than or equal to 2° (for example, 0.1°, 0.2°, 2°, etc.), they can be regarded as mutually parallel. The mutual perpendicularity in this application is not absolute perpendicularity, and the approximate perpendicularity caused by processing errors and assembly errors is also within the scope of mutual perpendicularity in this application. For example, when the angle between two structural features is 88° to 92° (for example, 88°, 89°, 91°, etc.), they can be regarded as mutually perpendicular. The limitations of mutual parallelism and mutual perpendicularity will not be repeated in the following text.

[0063] In addition, it should be noted that the directional terms such as "up", "down", "left", "right", "front", "back", "top" and "bottom" in this document refer to the orientation of the mobile phone 1 in normal use (for example, in normal use, the back cover 12 described below is located on the back of the mobile phone 1), and do not indicate or imply that the referred components must have a specific orientation. The orientation may change accordingly according to actual use and should not be understood as a limitation on this application.

[0064] Combine Figure 1A and Figure 1B The mobile phone 1 includes a housing 10 , a display screen 20 , and a camera module 30 .

[0065] The housing 10 may include a middle frame 11 and a back cover 12. The middle frame 11 and back cover 12 may be integrally formed or assembled into a single piece. Along the Z-axis, the back cover 12 and the display screen 20 are mounted on opposite sides of the middle frame 11, thereby forming a receiving cavity 13.

[0066] The camera module 30 is disposed in the accommodating cavity 13. A light-transmitting hole 14 is provided in the back cover 12 at a position corresponding to the camera module 30. Light (e.g., light L0) emitted by a distant object can pass through the light-transmitting hole 14 and enter the camera module 30 to enable the shooting function. For example, the back cover 12 may further include a light-transmitting lens (not shown). The light-transmitting lens is installed in the light-transmitting hole 14 to allow light from outside the mobile phone 1 to pass through while playing a role in waterproofing and dustproofing.

[0067] In other embodiments, the camera module 30 may be installed at other locations within the accommodating cavity 13. For example, the camera module 30 may be installed at the upper left or upper right corner of the accommodating cavity 13. In another example, the camera module 30 may be detachably mounted on the housing 10 via an auxiliary component, and the auxiliary component may be rotatable or translatable relative to the housing 10. In other embodiments, the camera module 30 may be a front-facing camera, which is not a limitation of this application.

[0068] In order to achieve clear imaging of distant objects, the camera module can be a telephoto camera module. An exemplary structure of a telephoto camera module is described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0069] Specifically, Figure 2 Schematic diagram of the structure of the telephoto camera module 30a in some technical solutions is shown. Figure 2 The telephoto camera module 30a includes a lens assembly 310a and an image sensor 320a.

[0070] Lens assembly 310a and image sensor 320a are spaced apart along the X-axis. Image sensor 320a is positioned horizontally, that is, parallel to the Z-axis. At this point, the photosensitive surface 321a of image sensor 320a is parallel to the Z-axis. Light ray L0 can pass through lens assembly 310a and directly project onto the photosensitive surface 321a of image sensor 320a, thereby forming an image of the object being photographed.

[0071] In the telephoto camera module 30a, the straight-line distance from the lens assembly 310a to the image sensor 320a needs to be set larger (for example, Figure 2 In the example shown, the distance D1) is sufficient to ensure a long back focus optical path, thereby achieving a long focal length and ensuring good long-range shooting performance. However, this will result in a less compact layout of the lens assembly 310a and image sensor 320a, making the telephoto camera module 30a larger and occupying more space in the mobile phone.

[0072] Second, the size of the image sensor 320a (e.g., Figure 2The dimension D2 in the example shown also needs to be set larger to ensure that the area of ​​the photosensitive surface 321a is large enough to increase the amount of light entering, thereby ensuring the shooting performance of night scenes, dark light and backlit scenes. However, when the image sensor 320a is placed horizontally, the larger dimension D2 will cause the size of the telephoto camera module 30a along the Z-axis to be larger. In addition, other devices connected to the image sensor 320a (for example, circuit boards) also need to be placed horizontally, which will also occupy more space in the Z-axis direction, which is not conducive to thinning the thickness of the mobile phone. In addition, due to the thickness of the mobile phone itself, the upper limit of the area of ​​the photosensitive surface 321a of the image sensor 320a is relatively low, and the effect of improving the shooting performance of night scenes, dark light and backlit scenes is limited.

[0073] To address the above-mentioned issues, the present application provides a camera module. This camera module is capable of effectively reducing its size while ensuring shooting performance (e.g., shooting performance for distant scenes, night scenes, low-light scenes, and backlit scenes), thereby meeting the current design requirements for miniaturization and compactness of mobile phones. A detailed description of the module is provided below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0074] Figure 3 The exemplary structure of the camera module 30 in the embodiment of the present application is shown. Figure 4 FIG1 shows the optical path diagram of the camera module 30 in the embodiment of the present application. It can be understood that for the convenience of observation, Figure 4 FIG. 1 shows a partial structure of the housing 10 and the display screen 20 of the mobile phone 1. Figure 3 and Figure 4 The camera module 30 includes a prism 300 , a lens assembly 310 and an image sensor 320 .

[0075] The prism 300 includes an incident surface 301, a first reflective surface 302A, a second reflective surface 302B, a third reflective surface 302C, and an exit surface 303. One end of the incident surface 301 is connected to one end of the second reflective surface 302B. An angle α1 between the incident surface 301 and the second reflective surface 302B is an obtuse angle.

[0076] The other end of the incident surface 301 is connected to one end of the exit surface 303. The incident surface 301 and the exit surface 303 are parallel. For example, the incident surface 301 and the exit surface 303 can be coplanar. It can be understood that the coplanarity in the present application is not absolute coplanarity, and the approximate coplanarity caused by processing errors and assembly errors is also within the scope of the coplanarity of the present application. For example, the incident surface 301 and the exit surface 303 can be approximately parallel and basically in the same plane. That is, there can be a certain range of angles between the incident surface 301 and the exit surface 303. Alternatively, there can be a certain distance between the incident surface 301 and the exit surface 303.

[0077] The other end of the exit surface 303 is connected to one end of the third reflective surface 302C. The included angle β1 between the exit surface 303 and the third reflective surface 302C is 45°. The other end of the third reflective surface 302C is connected to one end of the first reflective surface 302A. The included angle α2 between the third reflective surface 302C and the first reflective surface 302A is an obtuse angle. The included angle β2 between the first reflective surface 302A and the second reflective surface 302B is 45°.

[0078] It can be understood that, taking into account manufacturing and assembly tolerances, the angles between the various working surfaces of the prism 300 in the embodiment of the present application are not required to be absolutely equal to a specific angle. As long as the angles are within the tolerance range, they can be considered to meet the requirements. For example, in this embodiment, the deviation value of the angle between the two is within 5°, which can be considered as a normal tolerance. That is to say, when the angle β1 between the exit surface 303 and the third reflecting surface 302C is 40° to 50° (for example, 40°, 41°, 42°, etc.), it can be considered that the angle β1 is 45°. When the angle β2 between the first reflecting surface 302A and the second reflecting surface 302B is 40° to 50° (for example, 40°, 41°, 42°, etc.), it can be considered that the angle β2 is 45°.

[0079] The lens assembly 310 and the incident surface 301 of the prism 300 are arranged relative to each other along the Z-axis direction, and the optical axis O of the lens assembly 310 is perpendicular to the incident surface 301 of the prism 300. For example, the incident surface 301 of the prism 300 can be perpendicular to the thickness direction of the mobile phone 1 (for example, the Z-axis direction), and the optical axis O of the lens assembly 310 can be parallel to the thickness direction of the mobile phone 1. In this application, component A and component B are arranged relative to each other along a certain direction, which means that component A and component B are arranged face to face in this direction, and the projections of component A and component B along this direction at least partially overlap. On this basis, component A and component B can be arranged at intervals in this direction, or they can be in contact with each other, which will not be described in detail below.

[0080] The image sensor 320 and the exit surface 303 of the prism 300 are arranged relative to each other along the Z-axis direction. It can be understood that the image sensor 320 at this time is placed vertically in the accommodating cavity 13 of the mobile phone 1. In other words, the image sensor 320 is placed perpendicular to the thickness direction of the mobile phone 1, or it can also be understood that the image sensor 320 is parallel to the plane where the length and width directions of the mobile phone 1 are located (for example, the XY plane). The photosensitive surface 321 of the image sensor 320 is perpendicular to the thickness direction of the mobile phone 1, or in other words, the optical axis of the photosensitive surface 321 of the image sensor 320 is parallel to the thickness direction of the mobile phone 1. Exemplarily, the image sensor 320 can be a charge coupled device (CCD) or a complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS). In addition, the exit surface 303 of the prism 300 is also placed perpendicular to the thickness direction of the mobile phone 1.

[0081] Since the incident surface 301 and the exit surface 303 of the prism 300 are connected and parallel to each other, and the lens assembly 310 and the incident surface 301 are arranged relative to each other along the Z-axis direction, and the image sensor 320 and the exit surface 303 are arranged relative to each other along the Z-axis direction, the lens assembly 310 and the image sensor 320 are placed on the same side of the prism 300. In this way, the image sensor 320 can share the thickness space of the mobile phone 1 with the lens assembly 310, which is conducive to reducing the thickness of the mobile phone 1 and meeting the miniaturization and compact design requirements of the mobile phone 1. At the same time, it will also make the layout of the lens assembly 310 and the image sensor 320 more compact. For example, the distance D1 between the lens assembly 310 and the image sensor 320 is relatively Figure 2 In the illustrated example, the distance D1 between the lens assembly 310a and the image sensor 320a is smaller, thereby saving space along the X-axis of the mobile phone 1. Furthermore, the mounting reference planes of the lens assembly 310 and the image sensor 320 can be the same, for example, a surface parallel to the incident surface 301 and the exit surface 303 (e.g., the XY plane), thereby effectively reducing assembly difficulty, minimizing installation errors, and improving imaging performance.

[0082] Secondly, the image sensor 320 is placed vertically in the housing cavity 13 of the mobile phone 1, and the housing cavity 13 of the mobile phone 1 has a large space in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction. Therefore, without increasing the thickness, the size of the image sensor 320 (for example Figure 4In the example shown, dimension D2 can be set as large as possible, effectively increasing the area of ​​the photosensitive surface 321 and improving the amount of light entering. This allows the camera module 30 to capture better night, low-light, and backlit scenes. Furthermore, the number of pixels can be increased, thereby improving resolution and, in turn, image quality. Furthermore, components connected to the image sensor 320 (e.g., a circuit board) can be placed vertically, thereby reducing the thickness of the mobile phone 1 and meeting the requirements for miniaturization and compactness of the mobile phone 1.

[0083] It is understood that the image sensor 320 may be a quadrilateral, a circle, or another shape. If the image sensor 320 is a quadrilateral, the dimension D2 may be the width or length of the image sensor 320 ; if the image sensor 320 is a circle, the dimension D2 may be the diameter of the image sensor 320 .

[0084] Light from the lens assembly 310 can enter the prism 300 through the incident surface 301 of the prism 300. The three reflective surfaces of the prism 300 (e.g., the first reflective surface 302A, the second reflective surface 302B, and the third reflective surface 302C) can reflect the light L0 incident through the incident surface 301 three times, and finally enter the photosensitive surface 321 of the image sensor 320 through the exit surface 303. This allows the camera module 30 to have a sufficiently long back focus optical path within a relatively small space, thereby increasing the focal length and effectively improving the performance of long-range shooting.

[0085] refer to Figure 4 Combined with Figure 3 Taking the propagation path of light L0 at optical axis O as an example, light L0 from outside the camera module 30 first enters the lens assembly 310 and passes through the lens assembly 310 and the incident surface 301 of the prism 300, before being emitted to the first reflective surface 302A. The first reflective surface 302A then reflects light L0 for the first time, directing it to the second reflective surface 302B. The second reflective surface 302B then reflects light L0 reflected from the first reflective surface 302A for the second time, directing it to the third reflective surface 302C. The third reflective surface 302C then reflects light L0 reflected from the second reflective surface 302B for the third time, directing it to the exit surface 303. The light then passes through the exit surface 303 and the filter 330, ultimately irradiating the photosensitive surface 321 of the image sensor 320, thereby forming an image of the object being photographed.

[0086] Filter 330 is used to filter out unwanted wavelengths in light L0, preventing false colors or moire on image sensor 320, thereby improving its effective resolution and color reproduction. Filter 330 can, for example, be an infrared filter. In this embodiment, filter 330 is a separate component. In other embodiments, the filter can be eliminated and the filtering function can be achieved by surface or material treatment of at least one optical element in lens assembly 310. This application does not impose specific limitations on this.

[0087] In addition, the camera module 30 only requires one reflective element, the prism 300, to achieve multiple reflections of the light ray L0. The small number of reflective elements not only reduces the difficulty of assembly and unnecessary installation errors, but also avoids the increase in volume caused by multiple reflective elements. The volume of the prism 300 itself is also relatively small, resulting in a small overall size of the camera module 30 and a simple and compact structure, which is conducive to the miniaturization and compact design of the mobile phone 1. At the same time, the light ray L0 emitted from the lens assembly 310 only needs to pass through one prism 300 to be emitted to the image sensor 320, which can reduce the light loss in the prism-air-prism process, thereby ensuring that the image sensor 320 can receive sufficient light, thereby improving the shooting performance of night scenes, low light and backlit scenes, and improving the image quality.

[0088] Continue reading Figure 4 In some embodiments of the present application, along the X-axis direction (as an example of a first direction), the sum of the distance D1 between the lens assembly 310 and the image sensor 320, the size D2 of the image sensor 320, and the size D3 of the lens assembly 310 is a first dimension d1, that is, d1 = D1 + D2 + D3. Along the X-axis direction, the sum of the size of the incident surface 301 and the size of the exit surface 303 of the prism 300 is a second dimension d2. The ratio between the first dimension d1 and the second dimension d2 is 0.8 to 1.2, for example, 0.8, 0.9, 1, 1.1, 1.2, etc. In other words, along the X-axis direction, the space required for the lens assembly 310 and the image sensor 320 is roughly equivalent to the space occupied by the incident surface 301 and the exit surface 303 of the prism 300. The distance D1 between the lens assembly 310 and the image sensor 320 is relatively small, and the overall structure of the camera module 30 is relatively compact.

[0089] Continue reading Figure 3 In some embodiments of the present application, the prism 300 further includes a connecting surface 304. The first reflecting surface 302A is connected to the second reflecting surface 302B via the connecting surface 304. In other words, the main cross-section of the prism 300 is a pentagon. Alternatively, it can be understood that the partial angle area between the first reflecting surface 302A and the second reflecting surface 302B (for example, Figure 3The prism 300 is cut away (shown as the darker area S1 in the middle), thereby obtaining a prism 300 having a pentagonal main cross section. The main cross section of the prism 300 is parallel to the XZ plane.

[0090] Figure 5 FIG2 shows the optical path formed by the light beam L1 entering the camera module 30 in the embodiment of the present application. It can be understood that the light beam L1 includes the light beam L0 mentioned above. Figure 5 Combined with Figure 3 As can be seen, region S1 is typically an optically inactive region. Therefore, region S1 can be referred to as an edge region. That is, edge region S1 does not allow light to pass through, or in other words, light beam L1 does not propagate through edge region S1. Therefore, removing edge region S1 does not affect the propagation of light beam L1 within prism 300. It also effectively reduces the volume of prism 300, facilitating a smaller and more compact design for mobile phone 1.

[0091] In other embodiments, edge regions between other adjacent working surfaces of the prism 300 may be cut off to further reduce the volume of the prism 300. For example, the edge region between the incident surface 301 and the second reflective surface 302B may be cut off, or the edge region between the third reflective surface 302C and the exit surface 303 may be cut off, etc. This application is not limited to this, as long as it does not affect the propagation of the light beam L1 in the prism 300.

[0092] Continue to refer to 3 and combine Figure 5 In some embodiments of the present application, various parameters of the prism 300 may satisfy the following relationship:

[0093] 0.2≤|tanα1| / h≤0.3 (1)

[0094] In formula (1), h is the effective diameter of the incident surface 301 of the prism 300, which is also equivalent to the size of the effective incident area in the incident surface 301 along the X-axis direction, wherein the effective incident area of ​​the incident surface 301 is the area through which the light beam L1 can pass; α1 is the angle between the incident surface 301 and the second reflecting surface 302B.

[0095] In this way, the effective diameter h of the incident surface 301 of the prism 300 can match the angle α1 between the incident surface 301 and the second reflective surface 302B, thereby constraining the direction of the light beam L1 incident on the prism 300, thereby ensuring that the light beam L1 can eventually converge into multiple image points (for example, Figure 5 The optical image is finally formed, and the telephoto shooting function of the camera module 30 is realized. For example, |tanα1| / h can be 0.2, 0.21, 0.22, 0.23, etc.

[0096] Continue reading Figure 3 In some embodiments of the present application, the camera module 30 may further include a prism housing 340 . The prism housing 340 is wrapped around the outer surface of the prism 300 to protect and fix the prism 300 .

[0097] Exemplarily, the prism housing 340 may include an upper housing 341, an intermediate housing 342, and a lower housing 343. The upper housing 341 surrounds the end of the incident surface 301 adjacent to the second reflective surface 302B, the second reflective surface 302B, and the connecting surface 304. The intermediate housing 342 surrounds the connecting region between the incident surface 301 and the exit surface 303. The lower housing 343 surrounds the connecting region between the exit surface 303 and the third reflective surface 303B.

[0098] The prism housing 340 selectively covers a portion of the surface of the prism 300, effectively saving materials and reducing manufacturing costs while ensuring installation stability. Furthermore, it prevents light beam L1 from being blocked from entering the prism 300 through the incident surface 301 and exiting the prism 300 through the exit surface 303.

[0099] It is understood that the shape of the prism housing 340 is not limited to Figure 3 The shape shown can be adjusted according to space requirements to meet installation requirements in different scenarios and improve overall space utilization.

[0100] It is also understood that the portion of the incident surface 301 not enclosed by the upper housing 341 and the intermediate housing 342 is the effective incident area. Thus, the size of the effective incident area of ​​the incident surface 301 can be adjusted by adjusting the relative position and size of the upper housing 341 and the intermediate housing 342, thereby adjusting the effective diameter h of the incident surface 301. This allows the effective diameter h of the incident surface 301 of the prism 300 to match the angle α1 between the incident surface 301 and the second reflective surface 302B, thereby achieving the telephoto shooting function of the camera module 30.

[0101] In some embodiments of the present application, the incident surface 301 and the exit surface 303 may be coated with an anti-reflection film (eg, an MgF2 anti-reflection film) to reduce unnecessary reflections, thereby reducing the loss of the light beam L1 during propagation.

[0102] In some embodiments of the present application, the first reflective surface 302A, the second reflective surface 302B and the third reflective surface 302C may be coated with a reflective film (e.g., an aluminum film) to enhance the reflective ability of the first reflective surface 302A, the second reflective surface 302B and the third reflective surface 302C to light, thereby reducing the loss of the light beam L1 during propagation.

[0103] In some embodiments of the present application, the material of the prism 300 is a material that can be molded, such as glass or plastic. In other words, the prism 300 can be mass-produced through a mold-forming process, thereby effectively reducing production costs, achieving high mass production, and high yield rates. For example, after designing a high-precision prism mold, softened glass is placed into the prism mold, and the prism 300 that meets the requirements of use is directly molded. Without the need for traditional rough grinding, fine grinding, polishing, edging, and centering processes, the prism 300 can achieve high standards of dimensional accuracy, surface shape accuracy, and surface roughness. The molding difficulty is low, and it is easy to mass produce, integrated molding, and low cost.

[0104] Continue reading Figure 3 In some embodiments of the present application, the lens assembly 310 may include a lens barrel 311 and a lens 312. The lens barrel 311 is sleeved on the periphery of the lens 312 to protect and fix the lens 312.

[0105] For example, there may be four lenses 312. The four lenses 312 are sequentially arranged along the Z-axis in the lens barrel 311. Alternatively, in other alternative embodiments, the number of lenses 312 may be greater (e.g., five, six, seven, etc.), thereby further optimizing image quality and enhancing image clarity.

[0106] In some embodiments of the present application, the lens assembly 310 may be a variable-focus lens assembly to meet the shooting requirements of various application scenarios. For example, the lens assembly 310 may include a movable optical element (e.g., a lens) that can be moved to magnify or reduce the scene to be captured, thereby achieving optical zoom, such as 5x, 10x, or 15x optical zoom, which has a wide range of applications.

[0107] In some embodiments of the present application, half the diagonal length (half image height, ImgH) of the effective pixel area on the photosensitive surface 321 (or "imaging surface") of the image sensor 320 can be 4mm to 7.7mm, for example, 4mm, 5mm, 6mm, 7mm, etc., with a large amount of light entering and excellent performance in shooting night scenes, dark light and backlit scenes.

[0108] In some embodiments of the present application, the effective focal length of the camera module 30 can be 50mm to 70mm, for example, 50mm, 51mm, 52mm, 53mm, etc. The large focal length provides good long-range shooting effects.

[0109] The present application also provides a prism, which is the prism 300 in any one of the above-mentioned camera modules 30.

[0110] The following describes a comparison between the camera module provided in the embodiment of the present application and camera modules with other types of prisms in other technical solutions.

[0111] Figures 6 to 13 The exemplary structures of several camera modules 30b in other technical solutions are shown.

[0112] refer to Figure 6 and Figure 7 The prism 300b in the camera module 30b is a right-angle prism that can reflect the light L0 emitted by the lens assembly 310b once. Due to the limited number of reflections, the back focus optical path of the camera module 30b is short, resulting in a short focal length and poor performance in long-range shooting.

[0113] refer to Figure 8 、 Figure 9 and Figure 10 The prism 300b in the camera module 30b is a combination of two right-angle prisms. Figure 8 and Figure 9 In the example shown, each right-angle prism can reflect the light L0 once, for a total of two reflections. Due to the limited number of reflections, the back focus optical path of the camera module 30b is short, resulting in a short focal length and poor long-range shooting performance. Figure 10 In the example shown, each right-angle prism reflects light L0 twice, for a total of four reflections. While this high number of reflections ensures a sufficiently long back-focus optical path, improving long-range photography performance, the large number of prisms occupies a significant amount of space, making it difficult to reduce the size of telephoto camera module 30b. Furthermore, light L0 must pass through a series of steps, from right-angle prism to air and back to right-angle prism, before reaching image sensor 320b, resulting in relatively significant light loss.

[0114] refer to Figure 11 The prism 300b in the camera module 30b is a pentaprism that can reflect the light L0 emitted by the lens assembly 310b twice. Due to the limited number of reflections, the back focus optical path of the camera module 30b is short, resulting in a short focal length and poor long-range shooting performance.

[0115] refer to Figure 12 The prism 300b in the camera module 30b is a combination of a pentagonal prism and a right-angle prism, which can reflect the light L0 emitted by the lens assembly 310b three times. Figure 10 The example shown is similar to Figure 12 The two prisms in the image also result in relatively large light loss.

[0116] refer to Figure 13Prism 300b in camera module 30b is a parallelogram prism that reflects light L0 emitted by lens assembly 310b four times. While this high number of reflections ensures a sufficiently long back-focus optical path, improving long-range photography performance. However, due to the structural characteristics of parallelogram prism 300b, its large size along the X-axis makes it difficult to further reduce the distance D1 between lens assembly 310b and image sensor 320b. Consequently, the compactness of camera module 30b needs to be improved.

[0117] In addition, the above Figure 6 、 Figure 10 、 Figure 11 In the example shown, the image sensor 320 b is placed horizontally. As mentioned above, this makes it impossible to achieve both miniaturization and shooting performance in night scenes, low-light scenes, and backlit scenes.

[0118] Furthermore, the above Figure 7 、 Figure 8 、 Figure 12 and Figure 13 In the example shown, although the image sensor 320b is placed vertically, the image sensor 320b and the lens assembly 310b are arranged on opposite sides of the prism 300b. The image sensor 320b still occupies a certain thickness space, which is not conducive to reducing the volume of the camera module 30b.

[0119] Finally, the above Figure 6 、 Figure 7 、 Figure 11 In the example shown, the installation reference surfaces of the lens assembly 310b and the image sensor 320b are inconsistent. For example, the two installation reference surfaces are perpendicular to each other. This makes it difficult to assemble the lens assembly 310b and the image sensor 320b, and it is difficult to reduce the installation error, thereby affecting the shooting performance. Figure 8 、 Figure 9 、 Figure 10 、 Figure 12 In the example shown, the large number of prisms also makes assembly more difficult and installation errors difficult to reduce, which in turn affects shooting performance.

[0120] In the embodiment of the present application, since the prism 300 has at least three reflecting surfaces (for example, a first reflecting surface 302A, a second reflecting surface 302B, and a third reflecting surface 302C), it can reflect the light L0 at least three times, which can achieve a longer back focus optical path, a longer focal length, and better long-range shooting performance while reducing the volume. Secondly, the image sensor 320 is placed vertically and is located on the same side of the prism 300 as the lens assembly 310. Therefore, without occupying additional thickness space, the area of ​​the photosensitive surface 321 of the image sensor 320 can be set as large as possible, so the amount of light entering is large, and the shooting performance of night scenes, dark light, and backlight scenes is good. Finally, only one prism 300 is needed to achieve three reflections of the light L0, and the mounting reference surfaces of the lens assembly 310 and the image sensor 320 can be the same, which makes the assembly difficulty and installation error lower. In addition, the number of parts is small, the overall volume is small, and the light loss in the prism-air-prism process can be reduced. Therefore, compared to Figures 6 to 13 As for the camera module 30b in the example shown, the camera module 30 provided in the embodiment of the present application can have a smaller volume and better shooting performance, and has low assembly difficulty and small installation error.

[0121] The above describes the implementation methods of the present application by means of specific specific embodiments. Those skilled in the art can easily understand other advantages and effects of the present application from the contents disclosed in this specification. Although the description of the present application will be introduced in conjunction with some embodiments, this does not mean that the features of this application are limited to the implementation methods. On the contrary, the purpose of introducing the application in conjunction with the implementation methods is to cover other options or modifications that may be extended based on the claims of the present application. The present application can also be implemented without using these details. In addition, in order to avoid confusion or blurring the focus of the present application, some specific details are omitted in the description. It should be noted that the embodiments in the present application and the features in the embodiments can be combined with each other unless there is a conflict.

[0122] In the description of this application, it should be noted that the terms "center", "up", "down", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "outside", "inside", "circumferential", "radial", "axial", etc., indicating orientations or positional relationships, are based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings. They are only for the convenience of describing this application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they cannot be understood as limitations on this application.

[0123] In the description of this application, it should be noted that, unless otherwise expressly specified or limited, the terms "dispose," "install," "connect," and "fit" should be understood in a broad sense. For example, they can refer to fixed connections, detachable connections, or integral connections; mechanical connections or electrical connections; direct connections or indirect connections through an intermediate medium; and internal connections between two components. Those skilled in the art will understand the specific meanings of the above terms in this application based on the specific circumstances.

[0124] Obviously, those skilled in the art may make various changes and modifications to this application without departing from the spirit and scope of this application. Thus, if these modifications and variations of this application fall within the scope of the claims of this application and their equivalents, this application is intended to include these modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A camera module, characterized in that: The device comprises a prism, a lens assembly, and an image sensor, wherein the lens assembly and the image sensor are located on the same side of the prism, wherein: The prism includes an incident surface, an exit surface and at least three reflective surfaces, wherein the incident surface and the exit surface are parallel, the lens assembly is arranged opposite to the incident surface, and the optical axis of the lens assembly is perpendicular to the incident surface, and the photosensitive surface of the image sensor is arranged opposite to the exit surface; the at least three reflective surfaces form at least three reflections on the light incident through the incident surface.

2. The camera module according to claim 1, wherein: The at least three reflective surfaces include a first reflective surface, a second reflective surface, and a third reflective surface that sequentially reflect light, wherein: One end of the incident surface is connected to one end of the second reflective surface, and the angle between the incident surface and the second reflective surface is an obtuse angle; The other end of the incident surface is connected to one end of the exit surface, and the other end of the exit surface is connected to the first reflection surface through the third reflection surface. The angle between the exit surface and the third reflection surface is 40° to 50°, the angle between the third reflection surface and the first reflection surface is an obtuse angle, and the angle between the first reflection surface and the second reflection surface is 40° to 50.

3. The camera module according to claim 2, wherein: The angle α1 between the second reflecting surface and the incident surface and the effective diameter h of the incident surface satisfy the following relationship: 0.2≤|tanα1| / h≤0.

3.

4. The camera module according to claim 1, wherein: The material of the prism is a moldable material.

5. The camera module according to claim 1, wherein: The angle between the optical axis of the lens assembly and the incident surface of the prism is 88° to 92°.

6. The camera module according to claim 1, wherein: The main cross-section of the prism is a pentagon.

7. The camera module according to claim 1, wherein: The effective focal length of the camera module is 50mm to 70mm.

8. The camera module according to claim 1, wherein: Half of the diagonal length of the effective pixel area on the imaging surface of the camera module is 4 mm to 7.7 mm.

9. The camera module according to claim 1, wherein: Along a first direction, the sum of the size of the lens assembly, the size of the image sensor, and the distance between the lens assembly and the image sensor is a first size, the sum of the size of the incident surface and the size of the exit surface is a second size, the ratio between the first size and the second size is 0.8 to 1.2, and the first direction is the direction from the incident surface to the exit surface.

10. The camera module according to claim 1, wherein: The camera assembly further includes a prism housing, which is wrapped around the surface of the prism.

11. The camera module according to claim 1, wherein: The lens assembly is a variable focus lens assembly.

12. An electronic device, characterized in that: The electronic device comprises a housing and the camera module according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the camera module is arranged on the housing, and the incident surface and the exit surface of the prism are perpendicular to the thickness direction of the electronic device.

13. A prism, characterized in that: Applied to a camera module, the prism includes an incident surface, an exit surface, and at least three reflection surfaces, wherein the incident surface and the exit surface are parallel, and the at least three reflection surfaces reflect the light incident through the incident surface at least three times.

14. The prism according to claim 13, wherein: The camera module also includes a lens assembly and an image sensor, which are located on the same side of the prism, wherein the lens assembly is arranged opposite to the incident surface, and the optical axis of the lens assembly is perpendicular to the incident surface, and the photosensitive surface of the image sensor is arranged opposite to the exit surface.

15. The prism according to claim 13, wherein The at least three reflective surfaces include a first reflective surface, a second reflective surface, and a third reflective surface that sequentially reflect light, wherein: One end of the incident surface is connected to one end of the second reflective surface, and the angle between the incident surface and the second reflective surface is an obtuse angle; The other end of the incident surface is connected to one end of the exit surface, and the other end of the exit surface is connected to the first reflection surface through the third reflection surface. The angle between the exit surface and the third reflection surface is 40° to 50°, the angle between the third reflection surface and the first reflection surface is an obtuse angle, and the angle between the first reflection surface and the second reflection surface is 40° to 50.

16. The prism according to claim 15, wherein: The angle α1 between the second reflecting surface and the incident surface and the effective diameter h of the incident surface satisfy the following relationship: 0.2≤|tanα1| / h≤0.

3.

17. The prism according to claim 13, wherein: The main cross-section of the prism is a pentagon.

18. The prism according to claim 13, wherein The material of the prism is a moldable material.

Images